Chapter 178 Gaoming Gaoming
After the seemingly reasonable but actually high-profile purge of the six ministries, the court fell silent again.
Even though they were used to the emperor's arbitrary behavior, this time he clearly promoted the fifth prince and frequently rewarded the fourth prince to appease the crown prince. These actions still made the civil and military officials hesitant.
Imperial Tutor Chu was the Crown Prince's closest confidant, and naturally, he was extremely anxious. He even couldn't help but say to the Crown Prince, "Your Majesty used to be indifferent to the Fifth Prince. After all, the Fifth Prince has Liu blood in him, so I thought Your Majesty must be wary of him."
The emperor doted on Concubine De so much back then that even Concubine Xu didn't dare to stand by his side. She had to address Concubine De as "sister" when she saw her. Compared with Concubine De, Concubine Yu's being favored for half a month now is just child's play.
But who made Concubine De come from the Liu family, and the Liu family was destined to decline.
Whether the Liu family is guilty or not has now become an unsolved case. The emperor will never review the matter, and Concubine De has been staying in the cold palace obediently for many years.
From the emperor's neglect of Concubine De, it is not difficult to see that he must have been afraid of the Liu family's power in the army. If that is the case, why did he let the fifth prince take charge of the army?
The prince has always been an impatient person, otherwise his condition would not have deteriorated over the years, but at this moment he did not seem so worried.
Even glancing at Grand Tutor Chu, the Crown Prince offered a rare word of comfort, "Don't worry, Father has his reasons for prioritizing the Fifth Brother."
Grand Tutor Chu's eyes flickered slightly, and he suddenly remembered that the Emperor seemed to have come to see the Crown Prince before the army's triumphant return. He asked, "Your Highness, could it be that His Majesty has told you the truth?"
The prince simply said, "No matter what, just remember that the fifth brother is not a big deal. The one we really need to be wary of is the fourth brother."
Imperial Tutor Chu couldn't help but say, "Your Highness, the Fifth Prince commands a large army and has the support of Prince Xi, while the Fourth Prince has completely lost face and is missing an ear. He's no longer fit to be on the throne."
"Alright, Master, trust me. No matter how high the fifth sister climbs, I can bring her down with just one word," the prince said. "But the fourth sister, huh? He lost an ear, and that's why he's even crazier."
Tutor Chu still had doubts in his heart, but seeing that the prince was so sure, he did not continue.
What they didn't know was that in the Fourth Prince's Mansion, almost the same conversation was going on.
Standing before the Fourth Prince at this moment was Xu Yuran, Xu Siyuan's eldest son. "Fourth Prince, His Majesty has ordered Father to reflect on his mistakes at home and hasn't mentioned any punishment yet. But he suddenly allowed Su Fengzhang to enter the Ministry of Revenue. Is this..."
"Su Fengzhang, humph!" The Fourth Prince also disliked Su Fengzhang. After all, he had failed to recruit this guy in the beginning, but who knew that in the blink of an eye he was getting involved with the Fifth Prince.
But he didn't know what he was thinking about, he sneered and said: "Forget it, let grandpa not embarrass this number one scholar."
Xu Siyuan hadn't expected him to say that, and asked in surprise, "Your Highness, what do you mean by that? Are you going to hand over the Ministry of Revenue?"
The Fourth Prince sighed and said, "I'm afraid Father has become suspicious of Grandpa. Su Fengzhang is the Fifth Prince's man, so he's better than the Eldest Prince's. Besides, doesn't Zifeng have a good relationship with Su Fengzhang? Let him move around privately."
Xu Yuran was obviously not as shrewd as Xu Siyuan. After hearing this, he frowned and said, "Your Highness, this Su Fengzhang is quite ungrateful. Initially, Zifeng was unable to win him over, and later, he ignored the Xu family's repeated overtures."
"Su Fengzhang is quite capable. If he were to gain a foothold in the Ministry of Revenue, wouldn't that ruin His Highness's plans?"
A hint of impatience flashed in the Fourth Prince's eyes. He thought to himself that if his grandfather were here, he would definitely not be so stubborn. He had to explain: "Su Fengzhang is Old Five's man. Old Five is now a favorite of Father. We don't need to make things difficult for him!"
Xu Yuran frowned and said, "But the Fifth Prince..."
"You don't need to worry about Old Five." The Fourth Prince also said so. Thinking of the scene when he asked to see the emperor before, he breathed a sigh of relief but also felt extremely unwilling. "Compared to Su Fengzhang, we are now dealing with the Crown Prince."
Touching the wound on his ear, the Fourth Prince's eyes were filled with venom: "He has hurt me so much, I must not let him go easily."
Xu Yuran said, "Your Highness is right. It seems that His Majesty wants to cover up this matter."
The Fourth Prince sneered, "That's why you need to use your brain!"
Xu Yuran was scolded and returned to the Xu family with a gloomy face. Xu Siyuan frowned when he saw him. "Who are you showing this to? You're making others upset for no reason."
Xu Yuran hesitated, recounting what had just happened before saying, "Father, the Emperor is now wary of the Crown Prince and his tolerance for him has reached its limit. In comparison, doesn't the Fifth Prince, who is at the height of his power, need even more caution?"
Xu Siyuan sneered and said, "The Fourth Prince was right. You are indeed a fool."
Without waiting for Xu Yuran to complain, Xu Siyuan said, "If it weren't for the fact that the Fifth Prince is not capable of anything, how could the Fourth Prince be at ease? Well, have someone send a message to the Ministry of Revenue, telling those brats to hold their heads high and not let this Lord Su catch them."
Su Fengzhang didn't know yet, but because of the Fourth Prince's words, he would feel more relaxed after entering the Ministry of Revenue.
On the second day after the palace banquet, the imperial edict and other rewards were brought into the house bestowed by the emperor. This time, it was not Eunuch Li who announced the edict, but another eunuch who was present in the audience with the emperor. He was extremely polite to him.
As soon as the others left, Su Zhaoshi could not help but reach out to touch the imperial robes of the third-rank lady, especially the oriental pearls on the crown, which were as big as beans, each one extremely round and shining with glorious brilliance.
Seeing this, Aunt Bai said in a playful tone, "Madam, why don't you try them on and try them on?"
Su Zhaoshi was a little tempted, but still said: "Goodbye, what will happen if it breaks down?"
Su Fengzhang actually smiled and said, "Court robes are not that easy to break. Mother, try them on and see. These court robes are not tailor-made. If there is anything that doesn't fit, you will need to modify it yourself."
In fact, according to his official position, Su Zhaoshi was already a noble lady before, but the Ministry of Rites has always been slow in handling matters. Not to mention the mothers and wives of minor officials, it is common for officials of the fifth rank and above to take a year or half a year.
This time it was the emperor who gave the order directly, and the imperial robes were delivered directly. However, since they were delivered the next day, it is conceivable that they would not be very suitable and would need to be modified later.
Su Zhaoshi agreed when she heard this, and changed into court dress with the help of Aunt Bai and others. It was her first time wearing court dress, and her cheeks flushed with excitement, and she looked very energetic.
"This is truly magnificent," Aunt Bai was the first to say. "When Madam wears this, she looks just like a royal consort in a play."
"Look at my mouth, how can I be similar? Madam is originally a third-rank lady, much better than the wife of a county magistrate."
Su Zhaoshi was also very happy when she saw the blurry figure in the mirror. She smiled and said, "I never thought that after waiting for my whole life, I didn't get my husband's imperial edict, but I got Erlang's."
"It can be seen that Madam is destined to be a blessed person." Aunt Bai said with a smile.
Su Zhao looked left and right, then went out to let her son take a few more looks, and only took it off reluctantly after the fun was over.
Aunt Bai looked at her with envy. Su Zhaoshi knew what she was thinking and patted the back of her hand and said, "Don't worry, when Lan Zhang becomes successful in the future, you will also have the opportunity to wear a phoenix crown and a red robe."
Upon hearing this, Aunt Bai's eyes turned red. In fact, these days, it was considered a good thing for an ordinary family not to prevent a illegitimate son from making a good future. Generally speaking, even if a illegitimate son became an official, it would be his legal mother who would be granted the title, and rarely would the biological mother be given the title.
However, Su Zhaoshi knew that her own son had a promising future, so she was willing to do a favor for Aunt Bai. They had been friends for many years.
Aunt Bai really understood what she meant and said repeatedly, "Madam, I will never be able to repay your kindness in my lifetime."
"We're all family, so why bother talking nonsense?" Su Zhaoshi smiled, and stroked Su Huihui's hair. "Wait a couple of years, and Huihui will be ready to find a date. Then we'll look for someone who will marry into a family where she can wear the imperial decree."
Su Huihui pouted, her cheeks flushed as she said, "Mom, aunt, you just know how to tease me."
After saying that, he jumped out.
Su Zhaoshi and Aunt Bai smiled at each other and shook their heads. Su Zhaoshi continued, "Huihui is the only daughter in the family, and now she's the legitimate daughter. We must take a good look at each other."
This has to start with Su Fengzhang becoming the top scorer in the imperial examination. Su Zhaoshi knew the difference between legitimate and illegitimate children. Boys were still better, but there was a big difference between legitimate and illegitimate daughters.
So the two women discussed it and decided to register Su Huihui under the name of Su Zhaoshi in their hometown early on to make her a legitimate child.
Speaking of marriage, Su Zhaoshi was worried again: "I don't know when Erlang will be able to get married, and there is no news from His Majesty."
Aunt Bai comforted her, "Madam, don't worry. Erlang has been promoted and rewarded. The emperor will never treat him unfairly. He will definitely find a perfect match for him."
When the two of them walked out of the door, chatting and laughing, they saw Su Fengzhang about to go out. Su Zhaoshi hurriedly asked, "Feng'er, where are you going? Didn't you say you could rest for a few days?"
The emperor was considerate and gave them a half-month vacation.
Su Fengzhang turned around and explained, "I asked Arong to find someone before, and now he has finally found her. Mom, I'll be back soon."
"Hey..." Su Zhao wanted to ask again, but Su Fengzhang had already hurried out with Su Arong.
She couldn't help but mutter, "Who are you looking for in such a hurry?"
Su Huihui said, "I heard my brother mention something about the border yesterday. It might be General Liu's family."
Speaking of Liu Wei, Su Zhao also sighed and said, "It is indeed time to go earlier."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
